They are trusting and healthy ... and 'perfect' for the lab: Campaign launched to stop drug-testing on 'big-hearted' beagles

They are big-hearted and trusting with few inherited medical conditions - and that is why beagles have long been used for scientific research.

But now a campaign has been launched to save them from laboratory experiments.

The Beagle Welfare Scheme is urging the Government to bar researchers from using the hounds for experiments.

Trusting and loving: Beagles are being used for drug-testing - and campaigners want to see this stopped

The welfare scheme, an advisory group that aims to prevent maltreatment and cruelty to beagles, has the backing of The Kennel Club, The Beagle Club and The Beagle Association, with its Run Free programme.

Christine Wynne, Beagle Welfare’s national secretary, said: ‘Historically beagles have been used for research and testing because hounds are built to run all day, which means they have big hearts.

‘This means they are better able to withstand the effects of the drugs that are pumped into them. They are also small enough to be handled, while their intrinsic good nature and trusting personality make them ideal for laboratory work.

‘Sadly and ironically, it is because they are hounds that they are totally unsuitable to live a solitary existence forced upon them by this work. They never get to be the pack dogs they were bred to be.’

Ms Wynne added: ‘Beagles need to be doing what they do best, running free in open countryside, ears flying.’